TY - JOUR
T1 - Mineralisation of catch crop residues and N transfer to the subsequent crop
AU - Vogeler, Iris
AU - Böldt, Matthias
AU - Taube, Friedhelm
N1 - Funding Information:
The research activities were funded by Aarhus University Research Foundation (AUFF) Starting Grant and by the Rural Development Program of the Federal State of Schleswig-Holstein (LPLR) as part of the European agricultural fund for rural development (EAFRD) called European innovation partnership for Agricultural productivity and Sustainability (EIP-Agri).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Authors
PY - 2022/3/1
Y1 - 2022/3/1
N2 - Catch crops (CC) are widely used to reduce nitrogen leaching from arable cropping systems. However, the mineralisation rate of different catch crop species, and the fate of the mineralised N remain unclear. In this study, we performed an analysis, based on N mineralisation incubation experiments, to test and parameterise a simple mineralisation model (SMM), based on a first order decay, for different catch crops. For brassicas and legumes, the C:N was confirmed to be a good predictor of both, the amount and rate of mineral N release of CC residues. For grasses, the mineralisation rate could not be well predicted by the C:N, which might partly be due to a very limited dataset. The SMM was then linked with the Agricultural Production Simulator (APSIM) and used to predict the N release from CC residues of either brassicas or legumes, and its fate, including N leaching and N uptake by a subsequent spring barley (SB) crop. APSIM simulations were set up for a period of 20 years and for two sites with different temperature and soil conditions in North-West Europe, Foulum in Denmark and Kiel, Germany. Simulated N uptake by the CC was higher in Kiel compared with Foulum, with an average of 14.8 kg/ha for the crucifers and 16.8 kg/ha for the legume in Foulum, and of 33.2 kg/ha for the crucifers and 51.4 kg/ha for the legume in Kiel. CC increased yield of SB on average by 5 to 7%, due to transfer of N. This N transfer resulted in an average reduction in N leaching by 59% (brassica) and by 43% (legume) in Foulum, and by 83% (brassica) and by 43% (legume) in Kiel. N fertilisation of CC is not of any benefit in most of the 20 years of simulation.
AB - Catch crops (CC) are widely used to reduce nitrogen leaching from arable cropping systems. However, the mineralisation rate of different catch crop species, and the fate of the mineralised N remain unclear. In this study, we performed an analysis, based on N mineralisation incubation experiments, to test and parameterise a simple mineralisation model (SMM), based on a first order decay, for different catch crops. For brassicas and legumes, the C:N was confirmed to be a good predictor of both, the amount and rate of mineral N release of CC residues. For grasses, the mineralisation rate could not be well predicted by the C:N, which might partly be due to a very limited dataset. The SMM was then linked with the Agricultural Production Simulator (APSIM) and used to predict the N release from CC residues of either brassicas or legumes, and its fate, including N leaching and N uptake by a subsequent spring barley (SB) crop. APSIM simulations were set up for a period of 20 years and for two sites with different temperature and soil conditions in North-West Europe, Foulum in Denmark and Kiel, Germany. Simulated N uptake by the CC was higher in Kiel compared with Foulum, with an average of 14.8 kg/ha for the crucifers and 16.8 kg/ha for the legume in Foulum, and of 33.2 kg/ha for the crucifers and 51.4 kg/ha for the legume in Kiel. CC increased yield of SB on average by 5 to 7%, due to transfer of N. This N transfer resulted in an average reduction in N leaching by 59% (brassica) and by 43% (legume) in Foulum, and by 83% (brassica) and by 43% (legume) in Kiel. N fertilisation of CC is not of any benefit in most of the 20 years of simulation.
KW - APSIM modelling
KW - Catch crops
KW - Crucifers
KW - Grasses
KW - Legumes
KW - Literature incubation studies
KW - Spring barley
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85120958966&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.152142
DO - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.152142
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 34896146
AN - SCOPUS:85120958966
SN - 0048-9697
VL - 810
JO - Science of the Total Environment
JF - Science of the Total Environment
M1 - 152142
ER -